NESP TWQ Hub

17/08/2021

Over the last six years the Australian Government’s National Environmental Science Program has been front and centre in helping provide the best available and technology to support and protect the World Heritage-listed Great Barrier Reef.
Discover how advanced 3D modelling by the NESP TWQ Hub predicts that upwellings of cool water on the Great Barrier Reef can protect corals from the temperature stress that causes mass bleaching events: https://fal.cn/3hu13

📷 Neal Cantin

15/12/2020

01/10/2020

30/09/2020

A recently published TWQ Hub report highlights potential for growers to use a newly-developed insurance product as a way to reduce fertilizer runoff on the Great Barrier Reef:

“We have shown that insuring against the risk of sugarcane yield loss with reduced N fertiliser applications is technically feasible. Further, we have shown that it can be implemented in a way that overcomes many of the problems that have plagued traditional crop insurance. The prototype product has received support from international re/insurance companies, and sugarcane farmers and the institutions that support them. If widely adopted, it could facilitate substantial reductions in DIN discharged from GBR catchments.”

Direct Link to report:
https://bit.ly/3jUyTVa

29/09/2020

Project 25 has gained some traction lately with more Russell/Mulgrave landholders coming on board with practice change to reduce fertilizer runoff to the Great Barrier Reef.

Minister for the Environment Sussan Ley said giving growers access to real time data had helped to build trust and provide confidence when making on-farm decisions that support the environment.

“This is an example of farmers and scientists working closely together to improve ecosystem health, ensuring farmers are fully informed and can have faith in the data they are receiving,” Minister Ley said.

“...Protecting our waterways means cleaner rivers, larger fish stocks, resilient marine life, healthier coral and stronger coastal tourism. To do this we need to work closely with growers and maintain their trust. The project has partnered with local farmers to design the program and carry out the research."

See the full media release via link below

https://nesptropical.edu.au/index.php/2020/09/27/joint-media-release-sweet-victory-for-sugarcane-growers/

📸Stephen Calcagno with one of the nitrate measuring sensors used in the project

24/08/2020

Our Great Barrier Reef Long-Term Monitoring team have found numbers of coral trout continue to climb in ‘no take’ marine reserves, also known as ‘Green Zones’.

Released yesterday, our latest Annual Summary Report on the condition of reefs shows coral trout numbers in Green Zones are now almost double those on reefs open to fishing.

Valuable to recreational and commercial fishers, coral trout numbers have been climbing since 2004, when the number of Green Zones was increased to 33% of the Marine Park.

Learn more in the report: https://bit.ly/31gxqBy

📸: F. Kroon

20/08/2020

Have your say on plans to protect the Great Barrier Reef for the next 30 years.

The Queensland and Australian governments are reviewing the Reef 2050 Long-Term Sustainability Plan to ensure that it continues to focus on the right priorities and actions to support the health and resilience of the Reef.

The draft updated Reef 2050 Plan includes a greater emphasis on climate change and its impact on the Reef. It also seeks to empower communities to take stronger action to protect the Reef.
The governments are working with local governments, industry, scientists, Traditional Owners, farmers and the community to deliver on the priorities for the Reef.

The Reef is under significant pressure but with strong local, national and global action to address the greatest threats, it can be sustained as a living natural and cultural wonder of the world.
Have your say on the draft updated Reef 2050 Plan by 30 September 2020.

https://haveyoursay.awe.gov.au/reef-2050-plan

The Australian and Queensland governments are reviewing the Reef 2050 Long-Term Sustainability Plan, also known as the Reef 2050 Plan. This plan is Australia’s long-term strategy to protect and manage the Great Barrier Reef. The plan sets clear actions, management goals, objectives and outcomes. T...

19/08/2020

After a cyclone impacted reefs in the Whitsundays, Reef Ecologic, in partnership with the local community and tourism industry began a reef restoration project. With the creation of coral nurseries, the idea was to grow corals in two high-value tourism sites to assist with natural recovery. The team of scientists have worked with local volunteers in the tourism industry on each trip from the beginning. This trip aimed to get multiple tourism crew involved, with hands-on learning to help plant the corals on their local reefs. The tourism industry crew are local reef champions who showcase their local island and reefs, so it’s fitting that they can assist in the reef restoration and help share the journey with visitors.

This project is made possible by the Reef Islands Initiative, a program of the Great Barrier Reef Foundation, supported by funding from Lendlease, the Australian Government’s Reef Trust, the Queensland Government and the Fitzgerald Family Foundation. This project is supported with funding from the Australian Government’s National Environmental Science Program.

30/07/2020

The July edition of our Hub e-newsletter, “View on TWQ”, is online now. Read it now at the link below.

https://nesptropical.edu.au/index.php/news-events/e-newsletters-2/july-2020/

23/07/2020

Very strong motivation for local-scale reef stewardship

Traditional Owners, citizen scientists and major reef tourism operators are motivated to restore and maintain coral ecosystems at their own sites, not just for economic or cultural reasons but also out of a real desire to improve the health of their patch of the Great Barrier Reef. These are the findings of a number of recent Tropical Water Quality Hub research projects, which looked at the attitudes of both Indigenous and tourism stakeholders in terms of engagement in reef restoration and tourism activities. While acknowledging that slowing climate change is essential for the reef’s ongoing health, major tourism operators feel responsibility to be good stewards, and Traditional Owners have cultural responsibilities to look after their sea country. These findings are being used by the Great Barrier Reef Foundation to guide investment in a new wave of locally-driven Great Barrier Reef restoration efforts.

Check out the findings in the reports linked below:
http://bit.ly/2Su1VNZ
https://bit.ly/2CLnia9

Photo: Dreamtime Dive & Snorkel

22/07/2020

A new report on designing an Aesthetics Long-Term Monitoring Program for the Great Barrier Reef has been released by NESP TWQ Hub.

"Monitoring of aesthetic values can potentially serve as a proxy for reef health monitoring in places where scientific ecological monitoring is not feasible or too expensive. Additional opportunities and benefits offered by ALTMP include greater engagement between Reef managers, scientists, citizen scientists, and the wider community in initiatives to restore and maintain aesthetic and other values of important habitats and places throughout the GBR World Heritage Area."

Final Report
https://bit.ly/3eWfNuo

Virtual Conference Presentation - Design of an Aesthetics Long-Term Monitoring Program for the Great Barrier Reef
https://bit.ly/3jviNRA

Project 5.6 Homepage
https://nesptropical.edu.au/index.php/round-5-projects/project-5-6/

Photo Credit: Matt Curnock

15/07/2020

Contracts worth $28.6 million have been awarded to help win the race against coral-eating Crown of Thorns Starfish (COTS) on the Great Barrier Reef. Find out more via the link below.

https://nesptropical.edu.au/index.php/2020/07/15/joint-media-release-crown-of-thorns-starfish-control-secured/

18/11/2019

Well done to all graduates of the Annual Reef Restoration and Leadership Workshop at Orpheus Island Research station, under the expert tutelage of Reef Ecologic!

Cutting-edge Reef Restoration techniques are supported by NESP TWQ Hub Research - more more information visit the project page:

https://nesptropical.edu.au/index.php/round-4-projects/project-4-3/

04/10/2019

NESP Project leader, Professor Norm Duke from JCU remarks on his multi-hub research and the compounding impacts affecting mangrove health across Australia's Northern Region and Gulf of Carpentaria.

“There will almost certainly be impacts on fisheries and the ability of mangroves to protect the coasts from erosion,” he said.

Initial reports estimated the area damaged in 2015 to be about 1,000km in length, but Duke says subsequent visits put that number at more like 2,000km. About 8,000 hectares (20,000 acres) of mangroves had been affected.

Mangrove monitoring trip to remote coast finds shocking impact of two cyclones across hundreds of kilometres

30/09/2019

"QTIC chief executive Daniel Gschwind said the climate change innovator was a newly introduced category to recognise effort in addressing one of the greatest global challenges."

Congratulations to Reef Restoration Foundation on their recent recognition! On-ground efforts at the Fitzroy Island Coral Nursery are supported by Tropical Water Quality Hub research.

For more information on best practice for coral restoration on the GBR visit the TWQ Hub website: https://nesptropical.edu.au/index.php/round-4-projects/project-4-3/



https://www.cairnspost.com.au/news/cairns/cairns-group-recognised-for-coral-growing/news-story/fd9eea6a037dcffd3a03a2f13b609f45

THE organisation which established a coral nursery off the coast of Cairns has received a World Tourism Day award.

13/08/2019

By applying the right amount of water, at the right time, in the right crop, to match that crop's requirements, sugar growers can save water and deliver significant benefits to the . NESP TWQ Hub researcher Yvette Everingham's video on innovative technology in this field has recently been shared as part of National Science Week Celebrations. Take a look!

22/07/2019

NESP Tropical Water Quality Hub research is continuing to feed into the Master Reef Guides program. These expert communicators convey the wonder, fragility and interconnections of the Great Barrier Reef, supported by the latest NESP research. Visit Master Reef Guides to learn more.

03/07/2019

Research delivered through NERP Tropical Ecosystems Hub (the predecessor to NESP TWQ) has illustrated the role played by emotive media coverage of the mass bleaching events on the Great Barrier Reef in 2016 and 2017. The emotional response to mass bleaching events suggest an outpouring of sympathy for the Great Barrier Reef and a link to increased climate change awareness in general, but also risks feelings of ‘helplessness’ in individuals to be able to take effective action to protect the Reef. While reducing greenhouse emissions is vital, so is ‘maintaining hope and offering accessible actions toward attainable goals’ for a future in which coral reefs and the communities and industries that depend upon them can survive. The study, led by Dr Matt Curnock at CSIRO, has been published in Nature Climate Change and is also the subject of an article in the Conversation.



https://theconversation.com/sadness-disgust-anger-fear-for-the-great-barrier-reef-made-climate-change-feel-urgent-119232

Severe coral bleaching may have been the crucial factor in bringing home the reality of climate change for many people.